Akani Nkuna
President Cyril Ramaphosa says South Africa’s construction industry plays a vital role in achieving sustainable development goals by enabling resilient infrastructure and promoting both urban and rural growth.
Speaking at the 2nd National Construction Summit at Birchwood Conference Centre in Boksburg, under the theme “Unlocking Infrastructure Delivery: Raising Construction Industry Performance,” Ramaphosa said infrastructure is poised to “once again become the flywheel of our economy”.
“Through infrastructure, we provide a country that will grow and develop. Infrastructure facilitates trade and commerce. When we boost infrastructure through the construction industry, we also attract investment.”
He added that reliable infrastructure directly improves people’s quality of life and helps reduce inequality.
“Infrastructure provides people with what they need to live and thrive. It improves the quality of life and plays a key role in reducing inequality. Through reliable infrastructure, we boost the productivity of our people and reduce the cost of living.”
The summit brought together government leaders, business and civil society to discuss strategies for improving service delivery, driving economic growth through job creation, and addressing challenges in the sector — particularly the threat posed by construction mafias.
Among those in attendance were Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure Dean Macpherson, deputy ministers, premiers, MECs, mayors and private sector representatives.
Ramaphosa described infrastructure as the engine of economic growth and social transformation, warning that inadequate infrastructure could leave South Africa vulnerable to collapse and unattractive to investors.
He stressed the importance of a thriving construction industry, saying it “drags along the rest of the economy” and that stagnation in the sector would derail the country’s development ambitions and fuel social ills.
Earlier this week, Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) reported in its Quarterly Labour Force Survey that the construction sector created 130,000 new jobs — nearly half of all jobs generated in the latest quarter.
Ramaphosa reaffirmed government’s commitment to investing R1 trillion in infrastructure over the medium term — the largest allocation for infrastructure in democratic South Africa.
“We are shifting the composition of spending from consumption to investment. Capital payments are the fastest-growing item in our national budget and are expected to increase to about 7.5% over the medium term, alongside increased public infrastructure spending,” he said.
Macpherson highlighted the importance of strong partnerships between the public and private sectors to “turbocharge” the construction industry, saying large-scale projects require collaboration.
“By the time this summit concludes, we will have enhanced our programme of action with new ideas and deliverables. I want to go beyond diagnostics and into implementation. The reality is this: government cannot do it alone, nor should it,” he said.
He also pledged action against rogue and criminal elements, including construction mafias and non-compliant contractors bidding for projects beyond their capacity, which he said undermine South Africa’s developmental goals.
INSIDE POLITICS